Saudi Electricity Company (SEC) has launched the operation of a number of electric transmission and interconnection projects in the northern regions of the kingdom at a total cost of SR5.5 billion ($1.46 billion).

They include six transmission plants, five overhead lines linking a number of northern regions, including a 380-kV aerial interconnection between Tabarjal and Tabuk plants extending over 790 km.

Khalid Al-Rashid, the CEO of the Saudi Electricity Company For Projects Development (SECPD), a SEC subsidiary, said the electric projects are considered among the largest in the northern regions of the kingdom and which will contribute to linking these areas with the main grid and support industrial and urban development in Jouf, Tabuk and the northern border area.

The projects will also contribute to ensuring a stable supply of electricity to these cities and reduce costs of power generation either through advanced generation plants or lower fuel consumption. The six main plants include Waad Al Shamal, Al Qurayyat, Tabarjal, Al Jouf Plant 2, Arar and Tabuk plants, as well as overhead lines extending 2,214 km to linking these plants with the main grid.